The “Git ‘Er Done” Trap

"Excellence" — Celebrating what matters, not just firefighting.

I just had the most eye-opening conversation at a CEO roundtable, and I can’t stop thinking about what one leader shared.

Picture this: A CEO walks into a company where employees are constantly exhausted from “saving the day.”

But here’s the plot twist—they had no idea they were creating the very problems they were solving. 🤯

This CEO (let’s call him Mark) took over a company 25 years ago. They had a culture, but it was toxic and invisible.

The “Git ‘Er Done” Trap

The company’s motto? “Just git ‘er done.”

Sounds productive, right? WRONG.

The team had become addicted to heroic recoveries. They’d unconsciously let things slide until they became emergencies, then work through the night to fix them.

Why? Because that’s what got celebrated. That’s what made them feel valuable.

They were stuck in a vicious cycle:

• Wait until something becomes urgent

• Drop everything to fix it

• Get praised for the “save”

• Repeat

But, the reality of every “heroic recovery” meant disappointed customers, frustrated vendors, and a burned-out team unknowingly rewarding chaos over excellence.

The 25-Year Transformation

Mark saw what the team couldn’t—they were so focused on celebrating firefighting, they never noticed they were allowing small distinguishable fires to escalate into raging wildfires.

So he changed what got celebrated:

Instead of: “What fires did we put out this week?” He started asking: “Where have you seen excellence in our work this past week?”

The New Culture

After 25 years, their culture now looks like: 

✅ Everyone is valued equally 

✅ “We own this” mentality 

✅ Excellence is the baseline

They share stories about when the business was at its best—not crisis moments, excellence moments.

Because: What gets celebrated gets repeated. What gets inspected gets done.

Your Excellence Audit 🎯

What are YOU unconsciously rewarding?

Are you training people to be heroes instead of preventers?

Try this tomorrow:

Ask: “What are we celebrating that might be creating the problems we’re solving?”

Then: “Where did you see excellence this week?”

Watch the shift from firefighting to fire prevention.

The Bottom Line

Your team responds to what gets rewarded—whether you realize it or not.

Every time we celebrate a “heroic recovery,” we’re unconsciously encouraging more emergencies.

That’s the opposite of the sustainable business you’re trying to build.

Here’s my challenge: What invisible pattern might YOUR team be stuck in without realizing it?

Hit reply and tell me.

Harry T. Jones

P.S. Space is limited in the next Breakthrough group starting in January. Hit reply and get on the waiting list now.